Conduit fastener



J. M. FITZ GERALD.

CONDUIT FASTENER.

1 APPLICATION FILED AUG. 15, 1917. 1,418,370. t ne 6,1922.

P ATENaT F! E JoHn M. FITZ GERALD,

on orrrcaeo, rumors.

CONDUIT FASQENEB.

Specification of Letters Batent.

Batented June 6, 1922.

Application filedAugnst 15, Serial No. 1865261.

To. all whom it may, concern:

Be it known that 1, JO N M. Frrz Genera), a citizen of tl'ie" UnitedStates, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and. State ofIllinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvenientin ConduitFasteners, of which the following is afull, clear, concise, and exactdescription. y

This invention relates to improvements in electric cable conduits andmore particularly tofastening means for the capping thereof.

In railway signalling systems, it is customary to, house the electricalconductors thereof in suitable conduits. These conduits, as nowconstructed, comprise a long.

wooden box or trough, commonly referred to, as the trunking, throughwhich the con: ductors are passed, said. trunking being cpen at the topthereof throughout its entire length in order that the conductors may bereadily positioned therein after which. a suitable capping which forms acover for the trunk member is appliedthereto. The capping is generallyin the form of long strips.

or pieces of wood which extend longitudinally of the trunk member or aplurality of short strips or pieces extending: transversely thereof'andsecured thereto by nails, screws or other more or less permanentfastening devices. In this manner, a complete housingfor the conductorsisprovided which affords them limited mechanical and electricalprotection.

This fastening of the capping to the trunk member in a more or lesspermanent man ner, as above pointed out, is however, open to seriousobjections, owing to the inaccessibility of the contents of the conduitafter the capping thereof has been secured in place. It becomesnecessary from time to time to lay new wires orconductors or replace oldor defective oneswhich requires an expenditure of considerable time andlabor in removing the capping, which removal oftentimes causes saidcapping to become split or otherwise bro ken owing to its having beenmore or less permanently secured in place and also due to the rustingoff of the heads of the nails or other fastening devices which are usedin securing said capping in, position.

An importantobject of the present invention, is therefore to provide afastener for conduits of the type described which shall be s mpleconstruction and operation, economical to manufacture and one which maybe readily and quickly applied to the conduit without the aid of nails,screws or any other like fastening means, and one which, when applied,will securely clamp the c pping in place.

Another object is to provide a fastener which. may be easily and quicklyremoved at any time without injury to. the conduit in order to permit ofthe capping thereof being raised from the trunk member for the purposeof p'lacingother conductors therein.

A. further object is. to provide a fastener of the type described.comprising a plurality of members, one of which is adapted to re ceiveand. support the wooden. conduit whilethe other member. thereof isadapted to embrace said first member and said conduit and to securelyclamp the capping thereof in place, said embracing member being providedwith. means adapted. to enga e the sides of named. member to therebyhold said. members securely clamped about said conduit.

Other objects and. advantages will be apparent from the followingdescription taken in, connection with the drawings wherein severalembodiments of. the invention are illustrated.

Fig. 1 is a, top plan view of a conduit showing fasteners constructed inaccordance withv the present invention applied thereto.

Fig; 2 is an. enlarged sectional view taken onthe line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is. a sectional view-taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 shows the clamping member of the fastener applied directly to thewooden conduit, the shoe being omitted. and

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of a slightly modified form of fastener.

Referring more in detail to the drawings, the wooden conduit isillustrated at 1 and is shown comprising the usual trunk member 2 whichis provided, as above pointed out, with a capping 8. As is customary,the wooden conduit is preferably supported above the ground on suitableposts, such as shown at 4 in order to prevent undue deteriorationthereof. As above pointed out, the trunk member 2 is adapted to receivea plurality of conductors which are positioned therein through the topof said trunk member, the capping 3 being then applied thereto toprovide a housing for said conductors.

In the present invention instead of nailing or otherwise permanentlysecuring the capping 3 to the trunk member 2, as has heretofore been thecustom, said capping is ren1ovably secured thereto by a plurality of fasteners LllSPOSGCr at various intervals throughout the length of theconduit, it being preferred to provide one at each of the points wherethe ends of the longitudinally extending cover strips, which form thecapping, abut.

Each fastener preferably comprises a sup porting shoe or base member 5adapted to be securely anchored by means of a screw 6, or other suitabletastening means, to one of the supporting posts 4:, said. shoe beingprovided with side walls 7 preferaliily vertically grooved at 8 for thepurpose hereinafter pointed out. The shoe 5 is adapted to receive thewooden conduit, substantially as shown, and in such manner that thecapping 3 thereof extends slightly above the side walls 7. A clampingmember is illusstrated at 9 and is shown provided with a top wall 10 andside walls 11, said cl anu'iing member being adapted to embrace saidshoe substantially as showm and in such manner that the top wall 10thereof will firmly on gage the capping 3. Formed in the side Walls llof the clamping member are out standing housings 12 adapted to receivecams 13 which are pivoted to suitable pins lilere tending through saidhousings "i2 and our" naled in the opposite walls thereof. The sidewalls 11 of the clamping member are pref erably constructed ofsu'liiciont length to extend well down over the sides of the shoe,substantially as shown, said :ams being so mounted as to fall by Vityinto engag ment with the sides of said shoe when the clamping memberpushed down into position with its top wall ll) in firm engagement withthe capping;- 3 of the conduit to there-- by prevent an accidental,displacement of said clamping; member and said capping and to tlrmlyclamp said capping in position.

As above pointed out, the shoe is pre orably vertically grooved asillustrated at 8, said grooyes being of substantially the same width asthe cam surfaces of the cams 13 and being adapted to receive the samewhereby said clamping member is anchored against longitudinaldisplacement. The lower ends of the cams 1,3 ar preferably provided withfinger grips whereby said cams may he rocked out of engagement with thesides of the shoe, in order that the clamping member may be readily andquickly removed when desired. The cam surfaces of the cams 13 nes? maybe serrated or toothed, if desired, as illustrated at 16 in order toprovide means whereby a more secure engagement with the sides of theshoe may be e'lli'ected and maintained. The cams 13 may be locked inengagement with the sides of the shoe [3 after the clamping member 9 hasbeen pusied down over said shoe into oper position as shown in Fig. 5..by means of cotter pins 17. or any other suitable means, said pins l?extending through the side walls of the h' usings 12 so as to engage therear surfaces 0 the cams 13 after the same have firmly gripped the sidesof the shoe ii to thereby prevent said cams being accidentally rockedout of engagement therewith hile it is preferred to provide grooves inthe sides of the shoe adapted to receire the earns 13 to thereby preventlongitudinal displacement of the clamping member, it is obvious that thefasteners may be used without such grooves.

In Fig. 4: one of the clanmino' members 9 is shown clamping the ca'iping 5 to the trunk member by means oi the engagement of the camsthereof directly with the sides of said trunk member, the slice 5being); dispensed with. If desired, the sides of the trnnlr member 2 maybe provided with gt'OUYtB, substantially similar to the grooves providedin the side walls of the shoe 5 to prevent loi'igitudinal displacementof the clan'ipingz member when the. same is used to clamp the capping2.3 in place witlwut the aid of the shoe, although an effective euganeut may be maintained without the aid of such grooves.

in 5 is illrstraited a slightly modified form of the invention wherein afastener adapted to be at plied to a. conduit at a point where the sameturns at an angle is shown. said fastener (ZOITJ JI'lS'lJQI a shoe and(lumping member which are ap plied. to the conduit in substantially thesame manner as hereinbefore dcscribml. l nstead, however. of providing:the clamping member shown in this form of the invention with a ram ateach SlClG thereof. only one ram is provided, it lit-nun pirotallymounted in a suitable housing in the short do wall of said clampingmember, substantially as shown. and, adapted for one-in erno]it with thecorn spondintr side wall of the shoe to insure a. tirm clamping of thereaping in place l t is obvious that with this angular form of clampingmember. no grooves need e provided to prevent longitudinal lisnlarementit will be noted by referring to l o: 5 that the form of fastener showntherein obviate the neressity of joining the ends of rondu' disposed at,an angle to each other. v aid las teuer actin to form a bruising to" theconductors fror the point. where they leave the one conduit to the pointt ere the enter h This overcomes the necessity of mitening the trunkingand; capping and joining them together in order toprovide a continuoushousii tor. the conductors. lVhile a right angle fastener has been shownin Figi 5, it is obvious, that, ta ners of any other desired angle maybe provided to accommodate, the'various angles encountered in the layingct conduits.

Fasteners oi the type illustrated in Fig. 2 may also be provided withonly one cam, if desired, and at the same time provide effective meanswhereby the capping may he securely clamped in position.

\Vhile the fasteners have been herein described and illustratetL asparticularly adaptable tor use in clamping the capping oi conduitsadapted to house the conductors of railway signaling systems in place,it is obvious that said fasteners may be used for many other purposesand it is therefore not desired to limit their use to the particularapplication shown and described.

Many other changes in addition to those abovepointed out may also bemade in the embodiments of the invention herein illustrated where notlimited in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention,'what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1,. A fastener adaptedto clamp the capping ot' a conduit to the trunk member thereofcomprising a shoe adapted to receive said trunk member, a clampingmember adapted to embrace said shoe and to engage said capping to holdthe latter in position on said trunk member, and means, interposedbetween the side walls of said shoe and the side walls of said clampingmember and housed by the latter for holding said parts securely inposition.

2. A fastener of the type described, comprising a shoe, a clampingmember adapted to embrace the same and provided with depending sidewalls adapted to overlie the side walls of'said shoe, and gravityactuated cams carried by the side walls of said clamping member andadapted to trictionally engage the side walls of said shoe when saidclamping member is moved into operative position thereon.

3. A fastener of the type described, comprising a shoe, a trunk memberfitted therein, a capping for said trunk member, a clamping memberadapted to embrace said capping and said shoe, and means housed withinsaid clamping member adapted for engagement with said shoe to retainsaid clamping member in operative position thereon, whereby said cappingis held firmly on said trunk member.

A fastener comprising a shoe adapted to receive a conduit, a clampingmember adapted to embrace said shoe and to engage the cover of saidconduit, said clamping member having side walls which overlie the sidewalls of? said shoe, and gravity-actuated, cams carried by the sidewalls of said elampe ing, member and adapted for: engagement with theside. walls of said shoe to clamp said cover in position.

5.. i'h fastener comprising a shoe adapted: to receive a container, aclamping member adapted to embrace said shoe and to engage the cover ofsaid container, cams carried by said clamping member adapted to rock bygravity into engagement with the sides of said shoe to thereby clampsaid cover in position, and means to prevent the disengagement of saidcams.

6. The combination with a conduit comprising a trunk member and acapping, of a shoe adapted to receive said trunk member, grooves in thesides of said shoe, a clamping member adapted to embrace said shoe andsaid capping to hold the latter on said trunk member, and means carriedby said clamping member adapted to project into the grooves in said shoeto thereby pre vent accidental longitudinal displacement of saidclamping member.

7. A fastener of the type described, comprising a clamping memberadapted to embrace a conduit to clamp the capping thereof in positionand cams mounted within said member and adapted to project inwardly intoengagement with the sides of said conduit to thereby retain said memberand said capping against accidental displacement.

8. A fastener of the type described, comprising a clamping memberadapted to embrace a conduit to clamp the capping thereof in position,gravity actuated cams mounted at the sides of said member adapted toI'YLOjQCt inwardly into engagement with the sides of said conduit tothereby retain said member and said capping against accidentaldisplacement, and means whereby said cams may be disengaged from thesides of said conduit to permit of the removal of said member.

9. A device for clamping the cover of a container in position thereon,said device comprising top and side walls and being open at its bottomand ends, housings provided in said side walls, and cams pivotallymounted in said housings in such wise as to rock inwardly by gravity.

10. A fastener of the type described, comprising a shoe having sidewalls and open at its top and ends, and a clamping member having sidewalls and open at its bottom and ends, said clam ing member beingadapted to fit over said s 0e and being provided with gravity actuatedmeans adapted to frictionally engage with the side walls thereof toretain said fastener in operative position.

11. The combination with a conduit comprising a trunk member and acapping therefor, of a shoe adapted to receive said trunk member, asubstantially vertical groove in one Wall of said shoe, a, clampingmember adapted to embrace said shoe and said capping, and means carriedby said clamping member adapted to project into said groove to clampsaid cupping firmly in position on said trunk member and to preventaccidental vertical or longitudinal displacement of said clampingmember.

In Witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name this 13th day ofAugust,.A. D.

JOHN M. FITZ GERALD.

